12:32a

“Right, Teacher,” the scribe replied: The scribe recognized that Jesus had answered his question well.

Right: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Right is literally, “Good!” The word means “fine, good, excellent.” It expresses agreement and satisfaction with Jesus’ answer. Use a natural expression in your language.

Teacher: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Teacher was a polite title for a Jewish religious leader. It was a title of respect for a Jewish man who had authority to teach the things about God. In some languages the appropriate way to address a religious teacher may be:

Sir Teacher
-or-
Sir
-or-
Master

Be careful not to use a term that can refer only to a school teacher.

the scribe replied: In Greek the words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the scribe replied occur at the beginning of this verse. They introduce the man’s response to Jesus. Put the information in a natural place in your language.

the scribe: The phrase the scribe refers to the scribe who was first mentioned in 12:28. Refer back to him here in a natural way in your language.

12:32b–c

You have stated correctly that God is One: The scribe indicated here that Jesus was correct when he said that there is only one God. The teacher recognized that this statement agreed with what is written in God’s law.

God is One and there is no other but Him: In Greek this statement is literally, “there is one and there is not another except him.” Here the scribe referred back to the verse that Jesus quoted in 12:29b. He expressed the statement in two parts that are connected with “and” in English. The Good News Bible has:

only the Lord is God

and…there is no other god but he.

The two parts of this statement have the same meaning. (The more literal versions (that read in 12:32b “he is one” or “God is one”) stay close to the structure of the Greek and could be interpreted either as “God is one God, not many” or as “God is the only God.” But the contemporary versions that translate in such a way as to make the meaning clearer all support the meaning here of “God is the only God.”) The meaning is repeated to emphasize that God is the only one like himself. There is no one else who is worthy to be worshiped as God.

there is no other but Him: The scribe may have been quoting Deuteronomy 4:35 in this part of the verse.

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